Tailless Whip Scorpion (Amblypygi)

Tail-less whip scorpion (Paraphrynus laevfrons)

Amblypygids are creatures of dark, shady places.And while they are arachnids, they are not spiders, but have the common name of tail-less whip scorpions.Yes, there are scorpions, and also whip scorpions, but these giants of the eight-legged world are a separate family.They can have a total length including legs of nearly 40 cm (16 inches, or roughly the size of a large Pizza).

They prefer to eat small to medium-sized invertebrates, like crickets.And even though they look like trouble, they are harmless to people unless you grab one and get pricked by one of the many sharp spines on the leg-like pedipalps that they use to nab insects.They have no poison fangs or suchlike.

Tail-less whip scorpions are found around the world in the tropics and subtropics, as far north as southern Texas in the US.The example in the photo is from a rocky streamside in Barú, Costa Rica.And while they are quite common, many people can go years between sightings due to their secretive nature, and I suspect that for most folks this is a good thing.